Poetry Explorer- Classic Contemporary Poetry, CAELIA: SONNETS: 4, by WILLIAM BROWNE (1591-1643)


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CAELIA: SONNETS: 4, by                 Poet Analysis     Poet's Biography
First Line: So sat the muses on the banks of thames
Last Line: Become more gracious by her sweetest voice.
Alternate Author Name(s): Browne, William Of Tavistock
Subject(s): Singing & Singers; Songs


SO sat the muses on the banks of Thames,
And pleas'd to sing our heavenly Spenser's wit,
Inspiring almost trees with pow'rful flames,
As Cælia when she sings what I have writ:
Methinks there is a spirit more divine,
An elegance more rare when ought is sung
By her sweet voice, in every verse of mine,
Than I conceive by any other tongue:
So a musician sets what some one plays
With better relish, sweeter stroke, than he
That first compos'd; nay, oft the maker weighs
If what he hears, his own, or other's be.
Such are my lines: the highest, best of choice,
Become more gracious by her sweetest voice.





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